SK&A was awarded a contract by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC), to provide ongoing survey information about the adoption, usage and planned usage of electronic health records (EHR) by physicians in U.S. medical offices. The SK&A OneKey database of 251,000 medical offices and over 700,000 physicians is delivered to ONC quarterly.
SK&A's Research Center in Irvine, Calif., conducts telephone interviews with office managers and physicians in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Every month, the researchers survey and verify information at more than 40,000 sites. Medical offices are asked about their intent to purchase an EHR and about their timeframe, decision factors (such as price and functionality), and awareness of government incentives for adopting EHR technology.
Physician Office Usage of Electronic Healthcare Records Software
| January 2012 | July 2011 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall U.S. Office Response | Yes % | No % | Yes % | No % |
| 45.6% | 54.4% | 40.4% | 59.6% | |
| By Number of Physicians at Site | Yes % | No % | Yes % | No % |
| 1 physician | 36.9% | 63.1% | 30.8% | 69.2% |
| 2 physicians | 47.1% | 52.9% | 41.6% | 58.4% |
| 3 to 5 physicians | 54.9% | 45.1% | 51.0% | 49.0% |
| 6 to 10 physicians | 64.9% | 35.1% | 63.0% | 37.0% |
| 11 to 25 physicians | 74.0% | 26.0% | 71.6% | 28.4% |
| 26 or more physicians | 77.2% | 22.8% | 75.5% | 24.5% |
| By Number of Exam Rooms at Site | Yes % | No % | Yes % | No % |
| 1 room | 31.2% | 68.8% | 28.2% | 71.8% |
| 2 rooms | 34.0% | 66.0% | 28.5% | 71.5% |
| 3 rooms | 38.8% | 61.2% | 32.9% | 67.1% |
| 4 rooms | 43.4% | 56.6% | 37.6% | 62.4% |
| 5 rooms | 47.1% | 52.9% | 42.0% | 58.0% |
| 6 to 10 rooms | 54.1% | 45.9% | 49.7% | 50.3% |
| 11 or more rooms | 66.6% | 33.4% | 64.1% | 35.9% |
| By Average Daily Patient Volume | Yes % | No % | Yes % | No % |
| 1 to 50 patients | 41.2% | 58.8% | 36% | 64% |
| 51 to 75 patients | 54.2% | 45.8% | 50% | 50% |
| 76 to 100 patients | 60.6% | 39.4% | 57.7% | 42.3% |
| 101+ patients | 68.4% | 31.6% | 66.1% | 33.9% |
| By Application | Yes % | No % | Yes % | No % |
| Electronics notes | 33.1% | 66.9% | 31.9% | 68.1% |
| Electronic prescribing | 31.1% | 68.9% | 29.9% | 70.1% |
| Electronic labs/xrays | 31.9% | 68.1% | 30.7% | 69.3% |
| All of the above | 26.4% | 73.6% | 25.2% | 74.8% |
| By Site Ownership | Yes% | No% | Yes % | No % |
| Hospital owned | 59.5% | 40.5% | 60.4% | 39.6% |
| Nonhospital owned | 43.2% | 56.8% | 38.9% | 61.1% |
| Health system owned | 64.2% | 35.8% | 63.5% | 36.5% |
| Nonhealth system owned | 43.1% | 56.9% | 38.5% | 61.5% |
| By Region | Yes % | No % | Yes % | No % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| North | 47.7% | 52.3% | 42.4% | 57.6% |
| South | 47.3% | 52.7% | 41.6% | 58.4% |
| East | 41.7% | 58.3% | 37.3% | 62.7% |
| West | 45.7% | 54.3% | 40.5% | 59.5% |
| By Practice Specialty | Yes % | No % | By Practice Specialty | Yes % | No % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 5 specialties | January 2012 | Top 5 Specialties | July 2011 | ||
| Dialysis | 68.4% | 31.6% | Dialysis | 64.9% | 35.1% |
| Pathology | 66.2% | 33.8% | Pathology | 61.8% | 38.2% |
| Nuclear Medicine | 64.2% | 35.8% | Nuclear Medicine | 60.6% | 39.4% |
| Radiology | 62.8% | 37.2% | Aerospace Medicine | 59.7% | 40.3% |
| Genetic Specialist | 60.5% | 39.5% | Radiology | 58.8% | 41.2% |
| Bottom 5 Specialties | Bottom 5 Specialties | ||||
| Plastic Surgery | 31.0% | 69.0% | Psychiatric | 25.7% | 74.3% |
| Psychiatric | 29.2% | 70.8% | Other Specialty | 25.7% | 74.3% |
| Bariatrician | 28.2% | 71.8% | Bariatrician | 25.2% | 74.8% |
| Psychiatry | 25.0% | 75.0% | Holistic Medicine | 17.0% | 83.0% |
| Holistic Medicine | 18.7% | 81.3% | Psychiatry | 16.7% | 83.3% |
| By State | Yes % | No % | By State | Yes % | No % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 5 States | January 2012 | Top 5 States | July 2011 | ||
| Minnesota | 65.2% | 34.8% | Minnesota | 61.8% | 38.2% |
| Utah | 62.7% | 37.3% | Utah | 57.6% | 42.4% |
| North Dakota | 59.9% | 40.1% | Massachusetts | 52.9% | 47.1% |
| Oregon | 57.3% | 42.7% | Oregon | 52.8% | 47.2% |
| South Dakota | 57.2% | 42.8% | North Dakota | 52.1% | 47.9% |
| Bottom 5 States | Bottom 5 States | ||||
| California | 40.1% | 59.9% | Maryland | 36.1% | 63.9% |
| New York | 40.0% | 60.0% | Rhode Island | 35.6% | 64.4% |
| Maryland | 40.0% | 60.0% | Louisiana | 34.5% | 65.5% |
| Louisiana | 36.6% | 63.4% | California | 33.3% | 66.7% |
| New Jersey | 34.6% | 65.4% | New Jersey | 30.0% | 70.0% |
Source: SK&A, A Cegedim Company, Jan 24, 2012 Based on telephone survey of 240,281 U.S. medical sites
Editor's Note: For a copy of the summary findings for publication, please contact Jack Schember, SK&A Vice President of Marketing, at 800-752-5478, ext. 1259.
Editor's Note: For a copy of the summary findings for publication, please contact Jack Schember, SK&A Vice President of Marketing, at 800-752-5478, ext. 1259.
I'm happy to see more and more practices adopting EHRs, but I'm surprised that the number is still so low - especially with the smaller practice sizes.
ReplyDeleteHopefully over the next few years we can really see a transformation.
Now that there are more cost effective options for smaller clinics, the number of EHR users should increase significantly. I think physicians are being more informed about the implementation process and the benefits of using EHR systems.
ReplyDeleteSome experts would argue that none of the results of this study are surprising. Certainly larger doctors’ offices are going to implement EHRs at a rate higher than the smaller ones – it also stands to reason that independent practices are going to adopt these systems at a lower rate than a hospital or health system and offices because large health care providers usually have more management focus on innovations and more ability to effectively source the funding for these projects. Ironically, though, it’s the independent doctors who may need these systems the most, since many of them tend to be “snowed under” by the extra responsibilities of maintaining revenue cycles and complying with a growing system of regulations. Ron McLaughlin, CEO, enhancedmedicalbilling.com
ReplyDelete